The Australian international - who has since made three appearances for the Tigers - swept the board at Burton's end-of-season awards night in April after scoring 10 crucial goals to help fire Albion to Championship safety.

His seemingly endless bursts of energy around the pitch also helped make him a firm favourite among fans at the Pirelli Stadium, with Irvine earning the supporters' and players' player of the season awards.

Irvine has spoken regularly about his desire to play in the Premier League and how a move to Hull can help take him a step closer to realising that goal.

But the Australian midfielder knows that, should he make it there - which seems a matter of when and not if - the progress he made with Albion will have played a key role, as he moved from a solid defensive midfielder to an all-round midfield dynamo.

"It gave me the chance to express myself and play with a little bit more freedom, which I hadn't really been used to," he said of his time at the Pirelli Stadium.

"The way the team was set up, we had an identity, we knew the kind of team we wanted to be.

"The players around me definitely helped me massively by freeing me up to do what I did and get me into the box and score goals.

"And in the second half of the season, it was maybe a little bit more of a different role, but one I thoroughly enjoyed as well, which was being more involved in the play at both ends when we went to that more defensive shape.